Featured Friday: The EPIC eBook Award

Before Kindles and smartphones put thousands of books in your hand with a single device, EPIC was the leading voice of e-publishing. Nobody else recognized e-books as “real,” including most of the literary awards, so EPIC did the only thing they could to honor the authors forging the way in the digital world.

EPIC launched their competition in 1999, with authors all around the globe entering their work in one of fifteen different categories. When the very first awards, then called the EPPIEs, were presented the following year in Omaha, a tradition was born. The awards banquet, complete with dinner, drinks, and glammed-up industry professionals, became the climax of the annual convention.

Like the publishing world, the EPIC eBook Award has adapted over the past eighteen years. New categories have come and gone. Old categories have split up, then recombined again. The physical award itself has changed.

The one constant, however, has been the judging pool. Every entry is evaluated by multiple publishing professionals, most often found within EPIC’s diverse membership. A judge could be a writer, an editor, or a publisher. Because EPIC’s primary intent has always been to conduct a peer-reviewed contest, judging criteria focuses on everything from editorial proficiency to plot and characterization, finding its winners based on quality rather than popularity. All past winners can be found on EPIC’s website.

Times are still changing, though, and EPIC is taking strides to offer more value to e-published authors who are struggling to be noticed. This year, the organization is introducing something new to the competition. Called the Tech Check Award, it will be given out to all non-finalists who score above a certain threshold in the technical criteria. The Tech Check will provide the means for authors to show potential readers that their work is worth a second look. It will be yet another way the longest running, most inclusive competition in the industry rewards excellent authors.

The current deadline for the 2018 awards is July 15, so there’s still time to enter! Both members and non-members are encouraged to submit. Don’t let the deadline pass you by!